I am unsure that anything can be mastered in a week, even if this book's subtitle is "Master neuro-linguistic programming in seven simple steps." Though, now that I look at it, the title doesn't actually say "master NLP in a week," it just says "master in seven steps" and "nlp in a week."

Anyway, NLP in a week, seven simple steps. The idea is one can change one's behaviour by changing one's thinking, and change one's emotional state by changing one's behaviour (ergo, change one's emotional state by changing one's thinking). Given that pretty much the only thing one truly has is her consciousness (thoughts, perceptions, all elements of the same thing), one can assume changing one's interpretation of reality can change the one's reactions to said reality.

More simply put, if one assumes the world is a bad place, the world is a bad place, and you see only the pain, misery, and hurt. You assume everyone is out to take advantage of you. If you see the world as a happy place, you might be suckered sometimes, but the journey will be a hell of a lot more fun.

My default is to assume the worst. It would probably be good if this was coupled with a habit of planning accordingly, but I don't. I usually just go along until, surprise, here is reality, and, oh, I was wrong, I do, indeed, have stunningly bad luck. You know, someone has to have the worst luck, might has well be someone who is mostly oblivious to it.

But, well, what if all of this really isn't that bad?

Okay, so, I've been trying to discard things I don't need or want any longer. You'd think I'd be out of all the things I want to get rid of, but, well, a lifetime of accumulation apparently takes another lifetime to disperse. So, I find myself seriously considering discarding, disposing, gifting, or recycling anything that causes me to pause, thinking that maybe I don't like it.

After my trip to Phoenix, I pulled out all my toiletries with the intent of using up the ones I don't use frequently, having less to cart around with me. One of the things I started using again was the Peter Thomas Roth anti-aging buffing beads liquid soap thingie that I've had for years now. I bought it on the recommendation of a friend who had just started using it (which frustrated me, as I had asked for advice on face treatments, thinking I'd receive recommendations for products that she had been using for years, not for two weeks), and never quite liked it. I couldn't quite figure out why until this week, when I realized the connection between this product, and my face breaking out.

So, here are two very big reasons for not ever using the Peter Thomas Roth anti-aging buffing beads product ever again, and I'm tempted to burn the remaining stuff I have:

Oh boy is this the BEST PEANUT BUTTER COOKIE EVER!

Mostly because I can taste the thing. That really helps.

And the salad I had today? Never has a beet tasted so amazing!

And the cashews? Incredible!

The tofu? I melted with delight.

OMG OMG OMG.

This morning, I weighed myself, and was down three pounds from last week. But that's not the amazing part of the morning! It did, however, take the edge off the blue that's been surrounding me for the last week, which is nice.

After weighing myself, I jumped into the shower, and realized, as the water hit my hair, UGH, my hair smells of barbecue smoke. It was from last Friday's lunch, when I went to St. John's with wet hair, so I'm unsurprised, but wow was the smell overwhelming. So, I squeezed a good sized dollop of shampoo into my hand and started washing my hair, the shampoo smelling very shampooy and soapy. And then it hit me.

I CAN SMELL.

MY NOSE IS REGISTERING SCENTS!

OMG OMG OMG.